Wednesday, January 15, 2014Carolina Panthers season wrap-up
By David Newton

Arrow indicates direction team is trending.

Final Power Ranking: 3
Preseason Power Ranking: 23

Biggest surprise: "Riverboat Ron." Not often does a coach admit he needs to change, but Ron Rivera did after a 24-23 loss to Buffalo dropped Carolina to 0-2. He admitted he should have gone for it on fourth-and-1 with 1:42 remaining and leading by three. He admitted he needed to show more confidence in his offense to make a yard and his defense to make stops. He went from one of the league's most conservative fourth-down coaches to one of the most aggressive, and added a nickname. He successfully went for it twice on the opening drive against Minnesota to start an eight-game winning streak. He went for it late on fourth-and-10 deep in his own territory to set up the winning touchdown against Miami. Carolina finished the regular season 10-of-13 on fourth-down attempts. Ironically, it was a failed attempt in the playoff game against San Francisco that led to the Panthers' 23-10 loss.

Biggest disappointment: The inability to win a home playoff game once again, which came in large part because of the team's late-season inability to convert red zone opportunities into touchdowns. The Panthers ran eight plays inside the San Francisco 10-yard line in Sunday's playoff loss, and came away with no touchdowns. Four times they had an opportunity to score from the 1 and failed. Had they converted even one, it would have been a one-score game at the end, leaving open the possibility for a comeback. I'm still wondering why 6-foot-5 quarterback Cam Newton didn't get the call on third down and less than 2 feet. You would think he could have jumped up and thrust the ball over the goal line.

Biggest need: If Newton is to have success as the team's franchise quarterback he needs to have more weapons. Outside of the aging-but-still-effective Steve Smith, and occasional moments from Ted Ginn Jr., he has none at this position. Brandon LaFell did little over the final three games to prove he should be re-signed as the team's No. 2 receiver. He could have been selected for the season's biggest disappointment. Don't be surprised to see the team address this position in free agency and the draft, which is heavy with receiver talent. It was obvious in the playoff loss against San Francisco that a major difference between Newton and 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick was talent at receiver.

Team MVP: This is a tough one. Part of me says Greg Hardy, whose team-leading 15 sacks and 38 quarterback pressures were key to what the team does on defense. Not to mention he played every position along the defensive front at some point. But I have to go with middle linebacker Luke Kuechly. He led the league's second-ranked defense in tackles with 176. He is the brains and leader of this unit. His ability to cover some of the league's top tight ends as well as set the tone for stopping the run was invaluable. His 24 tackles in a 17-13 victory against New Orleans in Week 16 helped keep the Panthers close enough to pull off a win that helped them clinch the NFC South title.

GRADING THE CAROLINA PANTHERS

Position

Grade

Analysis

Quarterbacks

Cam Newton matured into a winning quarterback. He went from believing he had to do everything to trusting his teammates. He completed a career-best 61.7 percent of his passes and had a career-best 88.8 passer rating. He had a career-best 24 touchdown passes and a team-leading six rushing touchdowns.

Running Backs

DeAngelo Williams keyed the league's 11th-best rushing attack with 843 yards. He also had 26 catches for 333 yards, mostly on screens and swing passes. Mike Tolbert added 361 yards and five rushing touchdowns, forming a a nice one-two punch with Williams.

Wide Receivers

Steve Smith had a solid season, catching 64 passes for 745 yards. Ted Ginn Jr. emerged as a threat with 36 catches and five touchdowns. Brandon LaFell fell short as the No. 2 receiver. He was shut out when Smith missed the final regular-season game. Overall, an average group.

Tight Ends

If Greg Olsen did not play in the same division as Atlanta's Tony Gonzalez and New Orleans' Jimmy Graham, he would receive more attention. He should anyway. Olsen delivered a career-best and team-best 73 catches for 816 yards and six touchdowns.

Offensive Line

They did a nice job of blending into a cohesive group despite several key injuries at guard. Center Ryan Kalil made the Pro Bowl, and left tackle Jordan Gross had one of his best seasons. But they gave up four or more sacks in five games, including five in their playoff loss.

Defensive Line

Their ability to be disruptive was a huge reason the defense ranked No. 2 in the league against the run and overall. They had 40 of Carolina's league-best 60 sacks. Pro Bowl end Greg Hardy was second in the league in sacks (15). End Charles Johnson had 11. Rookie tackle Star Lotulelei was a star.

Linebackers

Middle linebacker Luke Kuechly is a legitimate candidate for Defensive Player of the Year with a team-best 176 tackles. Outside linebacker Thomas Davis had a career-best 151 tackles and four sacks. He should have made the Pro Bowl with Kuechly. There aren't enough adjectives to describe how well this group played.

Secondary

This was the hardest position to grade. The team was sixth in the league against the pass. The secondary combined for 14 of the team's 20 interception. They were tough and physical. But when the team lost, it usually was the result of miscommunications or breakdowns here.

Special Teams

Place-kicker Graham Gano and punter Brad Nortman were legitimate weapons. Gano was 6-for-6 on field goals of 50-plus yards. His kickoffs resulted in touchbacks a league-best 79.7 percent of the time. Nortman had personal records for gross punting average (47.6) and net average (41.6).

Coaching

The way coach Ron Rivera remained consistent when the team was 1-3 was key to the turnaround. Defensive coordinator Sean McDermott turned enough heads with the league's No. 2 unit to get an interview for Washington's head-coaching position. Offensive coordinator Mike Shula helped turn Newton into a more mature, consistent quarterback.